This is the first of the movies from the manga force series I mentioned before. The disc does indeed with both Japanese and English sound tracks and thankfully the English subtitles.  I usually never watch something dubbed, so I'll try and use subtitled but I've got a smaller telly than I used to have so may resort to the English sound track. The disc also seems to contain a reasonable range of extras. There a making of, the trailer, a fact database and a sly and robbie music video. So these DVDs aren't as corner cut as I'd imagined.

(As it turned out, Windows Media Player didn't even want to show the subtitles, so that card was already pre-dealt...)

The film is damn fantastic. Every bit as good as I remember from before. In fact, this time watching it dubbed I had more chance to admire the scenery and and camera work. Considering it is over ten years old it is a marvel.

The characters all have a good depth, and it is easy to get drawn into the movie as Motoko, Bateau and Togusa unravel the plot. Which brings up a good point. The story does stand up to the visuals. We follow the members of the security services in sector 9 as they unravel the mystery surrounding the discovery of a female body hit by a truck driver and the existence of the puppet master.

From the excitement of the opening scene, the graphic opening credits and the haunting musical score this film kept me interested from beginning to end.

I remember about 5 years ago getting excited at the prospect of a Ghost in the Shell tv series.  These will require investigation.

Cheers

Chris